MONDAY 15th AUGUST

Bethan:
Our flight was early, but we managed to get on a plane with no problems - we were on our way! Once in Madrid, we navigated the metro system (first experience of Voluntarios who told me which ticket to buy) and then found our hostel. Did some sightseeing of Madrid which turned out to have been a great idea as later in the week the beautiful sights of Madrid were hidden behind 1 million pilgrims!

Marcus:
I was charged with queuing for our Pilgrim Packs - it was an industrial process! After having to decide what size T-Shirt to pick for Fr Victor (it's a secret!) I collected our backpacks complete with a copy each of "YouCat" - a "youth" catechism that the Holy Father would later encourage us to read.

We managed to communicate in some very patchy Spanish with an official at the Royal Palace and got let in for free with our Pilgim passes. It was quite stunning and twice as enjoyable due to being free.
James and I also went for a wander around the cathedral of Madrid which is dedicated to Our Lady of Almudena who is patroness of the City. A beautiful and very modern (1990s) cathedral which was consecrated by Blessed John Paul II, founder of the World Youth Days.
Met a lovely French couple over dinner who were with a 1000-strong Chemin Neuf group from all over Europe and we all chatted long into the evening about the Church, Catholicism in our respective countries, food, politics and the riots in England.

James:

In the evening, I put on my pilgrim hat and T-shirt (both yellow) and we headed out in search of Spanish cuisine. Madrid is still warm long after the sun has set, which is why gazpacho (delicious cold soup) is popular in Spain, but has yet to catch on in England.

MONDAY - PHOTOS

The industrial effort of Pilgrim Pack distribution

Looking good!

James and Marcus in Madrid

In front of the Palacio Real (Royal Palace)

Madrid Cathedral

TUESDAY 16th AUGUST

Marcus:
The second day in Madrid started with some more "continental queuing" for me [1] as I waited to register myself, James and Bethan for our front section tickets for the Papal Vigil on Saturday which we were lucky enough to be assigned. Afterwards, we did some more sightseeing before setting off for the Opening Mass at 8pm celebrated by the Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Antonio Rouco Varela, with approximately 8,000 priests concelebrating. The sound system slightly let down the event, but the enthusiasm of all the young pilgrims around us had filled us with a sense of expectation for the coming days.

[1] Continental queuing describes the system by which those unconstrained by British ideas of a waiting in a line fulfil the laws of physics by gravitating towards any vacuum space created near them, a system which only appears rude to those not understanding the inevitability of nature.

James:

We explored the beautiful Retiro Park, and found a temporary Benediction chapel in the trees by the rose garden, packed with pilgrims.  Later, searching for the Science Museum (our map was in Spanish), Marcus and I found an art gallery claiming to satisfy the social cultural needs of the population of Madrid. Its exhibits ranged from Teotihuacan relics to photographs of Soviet Russian architechture; the Spanish have a very varied social and cultural taste.

TUESDAY - PHOTOS

Marcus and Bethan at Palacio Cristal

James in Parque Retiro

Pilgrims dancing in Parque Retiro

Spanish building

WEDNESDAY 17th AUGUST

Bethan: First day of catechesis - World Youth Days really started for us on this day as we attended one of the english language catechesis sessions in the Palacio de Deportes which seats 12,500 people and was full up with pilgrims! This was the first time I was able to feel the inspiring nature of World Youth Day and was full of wonder at all these young people who had travelled the world to share this experience. It was amazing to see 12,500 people of my age and younger, singing hymns, listening intently to the speakers and cheering and clapping at any sentiment they agreed with whether it was that Jesus Christ loves you (woop woop) or a mention of their country or state (much cheering and waving of flags).

Cardinal Pell from Sydney spoke on this day and really struck a chord with me as he talked about the "reasonability" of faith and took a scientific approach to his catechesis session, which I could relate to. He spoke about how the likelihood of the creation of the universe occurring by chance is 1 in 10 to the power of 40,000 which you don't need to be a mathematician to realise is very, very, very unlikely. As a result of this calculation, we can be firm in our faith that stands side by side with science and reason.

James: I'm a mathematician and I can confirm that 10^40000 is a very large number. Cardinal Pell's talk was extremely interesting and largely scientifically accurate. I found the Science Museum on the edge of my tube map and set off on an expedition to the outskirts of Madrid, where I found that the museum was modern, interactive, interesting and really, really clean. It was also largely empty, possibly due to the hour-long metro trip.

Marcus: The sessions at the Palacio de Deportes were primarily co-ordinated by the Sisters of Life. Alongside Cardinal Pell's fantastic catechesis (I entirely echo Bethan's sentiments), was several talks by the Sisters of Life who described their very special charism to young pregnant women. They help these vulnerable women who are considering having an abortion by giving them somehwere to live, supporting them and encouraging them to continue with their pregnancy and gently trying to open their eyes to God's gift of love in the shape of their child. Two things struck me: firstly, how young many of the sisters were and how vibrantly they lived out their charism. One of the testimonies about the conversion of a young woman literally moved me to tears with the power of love which their witness embodies.

Funniest moment of the day was seeing Fr Victor's sing along to a christian rock band who entertained us at Marianfest in the evening whilst some excited Aussies and Americans bounced around and generally rocked out all around us!

WEDNESDAY - PHOTOS

Franciscan warm-up group

Sisters of Life talking in the Palacio de Deportes

Setting up for Mass at the Palacio de Deportes

12,500 english-speaking pilgrims singing at Mass
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 Marianfest celebration in the evening

Danielle Rose!

THURSDAY 18th AUGUST

Bethan: The Pope arrives in Madrid! We were very excited, waited in the hot, hot sun, conversed in rubbish French (me) or very loud English (Fr Victor) with a large group from France, congratulated Mexicans on getting there early and being right at the front....and then the Pope never came - what is known in Holy Innocents as the "Nicole Barber Experience" can know be known as our experience too :-(

Very disappointed, but what a wonderful atmosphere anyway! And watching 30 french people dance the macarena whilst Fr Victor led Marcus and James in the Rosary has to have been worth it!


Marcus: BENEDICTO...clap, clap, clap, clap, clap, BENEDICTO..... (ad infinitum)

On Thursday the main event was the arrival of the Pope in Madrid. The main square for the Papal arrival was full about 5 hours before the Pope arrived! So we strategically took up a place in an adjacent square in front of a big screen and in front of one of the routes for the Popemobile. We spent a long time crammed in waiting for the ceremonies to begin and passed the time by chatting with those around us and getting into the carnival like atmosphere. This included some lovely French people and some very excited Mexicans who were very much into the party atmosphere and were happy to lead the dancing of the Macarena. The recitation of the Rosary by certain committed pilgrims whilst said Macarena was going on all around us was definitely a first for me!

Sadly our strategic position at the front of the barriers (literally 5 metres away from an imminent papal cavalcade) was in vain as the Pope's route around the streets of Madrid was cut short as things were running behind schedule. But we all agreed that the whole service and the time spent with our fellow pilgims was truly special. Plus we had a bird's eye view of Deacon James Bradley from the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham (he recently preached at Holy Innocents' on Good Shepherd Sunday) who read the gospel at the Papal welcome ceremony - what a small world it is.

THURSDAY - PHOTOS

Ice creams for all!

Spanish pilgrims going to welcome the Pope

Fr Victor perfects his French (!)

Benedicto!

The closest we got - the Pope didn't come our way :-(

FRIDAY 19th AUGUST

Bethan: Friday started with a new style of music for Mass at catechesis - The Curtis Stephan Band were providing music, a change from the gregorian chants we had been using for the previous two days. It was amazing to see all the American and Canadians who knew all the hymns and were joining in. We learnt a new Lamb of God (Matt Maher's) so watch this space Holy Innocents' - it might be coming your way!

James: I had an omlette sandwich.

Marcus: The last day of formal catechesis was the best as we bade farewell to the Love & Life Centre at Palacio de Deportes. Archbishop Dolan from New York gave an inspirational and engaging talk on our duty to go and spread the gospel and the hallmarks of being an evangelical Christian. He rightly received a standing ovation from all present and he clearly connected with and stirred something deep within the hearts of all those present. In the afteroon James and I geeked it up at a panel discussion on the use of social media to spread the good news.

The Way of the Cross followed in the evening as the 14 pasos from all over Spain were assembled along the main street for a thoughtful and moving meditation on Christ's great redeeming act of love. As the Pope left we scrambled to get a glimpse of the Popemobile through the massive crowds lining the streets and set our eyes on the Holy Father for the first time as cries of "Viva il Papa" rang out over the top of the World Youth Day song "Firmes en la fe" (Firm in the faith - the theme of WYD 2011).

Eucharistic adoration and benediction concluded an action packed day for our physically exhausted (yet spiritually enriched) pilgrims.

FRIDAY - PHOTOS

When all around are dancing....[before catechesis]

Archbishop Dolan(New York) speaking

Outside Madrid Cathedral

Madrid Cathedral

The Way of the Cross - our first glimpse of the Pope in person!

SATURDAY 20th AUGUST

Bethan: What can I say - a very long day! I think Saturday represented the whole World Youth Day experience - ups and downs, heat and rain, fustration and then grace. The organisation was poor, information not accurate (we were told the walk to the vigil at Cuatro Vientos was 2 hours in the shade - it was 3 and half hours in baking sun) and there were too many pilgrims. But for me, it was all worth it to experience adoration with up to 2 million pilgrims and the Pope - an experience of beautiful stillness and a source of joy. Even the thunderstorm couldn't dampen the expression of joy in the pilgrims - singing and dancing!

James: On our three hour trek, we met pilgrims from all over the world, a real WYD experience. The camp was dry and dusty, but firefighters were on hand to drench over-heated pilgrims. We took seats near the front (VIP tickets!) and awaited the Pope's arrival.

SATURDAY - PHOTOS

 Before the three hour "stroll"

Rocket fuel for the journey 

 Now where is that cathedral???

A few other (hundred thousand) pilgrims on the walk

Came across Fr Robert from Ireland who visited Holy Innocents' last year

In case you didn't believe us - hot hot hot! 

Being physically washed clean 

"Esta es la juventud del Papa!"

Benedicto! [sorry - may not work in Firefox browser]

The stage

Archbishops

Good seats (when we found them!)

The Pope meets some young people

 Adoration - the moment 1.5 million pilgrims fell silent

Fireworks!

SUNDAY 21st AUGUST

James: After a night under the stars on the airfield, we packed up our camping equipment in time for the Pope's re-arrival, which included a trip around the airfield in his Popemobile. I got over-excited and took eighty photos of the Pope, his police escort, the surrounding crowds, the stage, the sky and, by mistake, my feet; all of these turned out to be blurry to the point that I can't tell which photo is the stage and which is my feet. After mass, we evacuated the airfield and headed for the airport. After a hair-raising take-off, we had a safe journey home to the (freezing cold) UK.

Marcus: The long march and slow journey back to the airport. Sad to be leaving, but with joyfull hearts, enriched by the blessings received and resolved in committment to build up the kingdom of god here on earth.

Stephen Greenwood joined the millions for the Papal Mass:

Sunday morning, the climax of the week! Having left the hostel where I was staying at 5.30 in the morning we made our way to Cuatro Vientos on the metro praying the Divine Office on the way, although pausing to greet various pilgrims who boarded the metro at different stops. One of the great highlights of World Youth Day for me was the amount of young men and women pursuing vocations to religious life. It really is something to see large groups of nuns in full habits all below 30 years of age. Wouldn’t it be great to see this in our towns and cities; a very visible sign of witness from young people “firm in the faith.” Having finally arrived at the venue for the final Mass I was told that they were no longer letting people in. After a few prayers to various saints the police finally saw sense and let us in. I was even lucky enough to be right next to the popemobile as the Holy Father passed.

As he always does, the Holy Father spoke so well throughout his visit. He gave the young people a special challenge: ‘do not keep Christ to yourselves! Share with others the joy of your faith. The world needs the witness of your faith, it surely needs God. I think that the presence here of so many young people, coming from all over the world, is a wonderful proof of the fruitfulness of Christ’s command to the Church: “Go into all the world and proclaim the Gospel to the whole creation” (Mk 16:15).’ The challenge of our generation is to stand firm in our faith, to overturn the culture of death and to be joyful followers of Christ in all of our thoughts, words and deeds.

One of the really great things about World Youth Day is that everyone can communicate. Even though we were from different sides of the world all two million young people spoke exactly the same language in Madrid; the language that is Jesus Christ, our companion and our Lord.

SUNDAY - PHOTOS

 Sunrise over 1,500,000 pilgrims

Unexpected tour by the Pope

Papal Mass